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All-New Wolverine #33 Review

The creative team behind the Wolverine Generations one-shot reunites to deliver 20 ccs of pharmaceutical-grade fanservice in the form of a utopian "happily ever after" future for Laura.

I have to be very careful not to spoil too much here, because all of the "zOMG, really, X became Y/married Z/had X kids?" revelations are the heart and soul of the book. In terms of actual story, those revelations are suspended on a nicely-constructed but reed-thin plot that leans heavily on clichés.

Okay, one spoiler, which the cover already delivers before you start reading: That's Gabby in the Tronverine suit. The story proper is ambiguous about it for all of two pages before unleashing Gabby in all her lightsaber-clawed glory.

After stopping a smuggling deal, Gabby meets with Queen Laura of Madripoor to get the plot in motion. This is also where the future revelations start coming hot and heavy; the whole Kinney household gets at least a visual peek. (Yes, that means we get cool updates on Jonathan and of course Pelican Statue.)

Laura's got a standard-issue reason to Put It All On The Line for One Last Job, and surprise surprise it means facing down this shiny happy future's one remaining villain. And, of course, This Time It's Personal.

She picks up key intelligence from a friend in a high place - possibly the book's biggest zOMG revelation - and also gets an unlikely partner in the form of a super-grizzled Maria Hill. (Is that another spoiler? Dangit, I'm bad at this.)

It's a nicely-constructed story for all its cliché-ness. While it's screamingly obvious that there's going to be a betrayal, when it lands in the twist ending, it comes from a surprising direction, and Tom Taylor deserves credit for that.

Visually speaking, this is a pretty underwhelming showing. Nolan Woodard uses a bright full-spectrum palette to make it clear that this is a good future, but Ramon Rosanas did not burn a lot of midnight oil thinking up wild new designs. Referring back to the cover again, Gabby's Wolverine uniform is just a quick pull from the "gently used" rack over in Tron-land. The Apple iCopter the Kinneys use for transport toward the end of the book is similarly generic, as is the instantly-forgettable peek at the shiny SimCity skyscrapers of Happy Madripoor.

On the more human side, Mr. Rosanas's anatomy and costuming is scrupulously detailed but also a bit stiff. Maria Hill's Snake Plissken look isn't helped by showing her battered mug in three nearly-identical poses/expressions on her debut page.

While I'm trending harsh on the plot and visuals, bear in mind that my genuine desire not to spoil the future surprises is limiting me here. I stand by the assertion that this issue is nearly pure fanservice; it's also top quality fanservice and plenty of the revelations Tom Taylor seeds into the script are delightful. It's not such a great book to talk about without spoilers, but after you've read it, you've got tons of awesome future points to ponder and discuss at great length.

Though the plot is by-the-numbers so far, that doesn't really matter when the main goal is to make the reader say, "ooh, lookit what happens to …" a half-dozen happy times. That goal is capably achieved (though some stronger visuals could have made the results even more memorable). Tom Taylor and company have another two issues to spice up the story and make it just as rewarding as all the "lookit this crazy awesome future" revelations in #33; I have every confidence in their ability to do so.

Our Score:

8/10

A Look Inside

Comments

My objective reviewer side might be all busy saying "hm, yes, rather clichéd" but rest assured there's also a more fanboyish part of my mind going "President ****** ha ha, yass!"